75th Annual Meteoritical Society Meeting (2012) 5103.pdf

KANDIMALAL GEOMYTHOLOGY. THE FORMATION OF WOLFE CREEK S. Hopper, R. Frost. W. Martens. Queensland University of Technology, George Street Brisbane, . [email protected]

Geomythology is the study of geological phenomena in- cluding astronomical events which have been recorded in “talk- ing stories”. Kandimalal (the Wolfe Creek crater) is sacred by virtue to its connection to other places and as a marker of the Dreamtime [1]. The crater was discovered in 1947, and repre- sents a simple impact into Devonian sandstones. It is located on the Billiluna Shelf on the north east section of the Canning Basin, Western Australia. Years after its discovery the crater still has many unre- solved questions which include the distribution and simulation of the shale balls to volcanic bombs, their aerodynamic shapes, their relationship to the laterite, asymmetrical deformation pattern of the crater, lack of impact melt, lack of fresh material, in fact many of the requirements for consideration for an . The Kandimalal Geomythology is the Dreamtime story of the creation of the crater told by the Walmajarri and Djaru Abo- riginal people. Dr Peggy Reeves, a Professor of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania spent time with the Walmajarri and Djaru people and published her research in a book titled “Track of the Rainbow Serpent” where she presented the tradi- tional story “in their own words” [1]. This process has allowed for a wider interpretation other than anthropological. Discussion: The Dreaming was told to the present day inhabitants by a previous group of people who were the original inhabitants described as little people, little wild men, murung- kurr. They had been living in the area for a long time, back to when the land was first flat. Shoemakers dating of the crater of 300,000 years [2], the first arrival of man to Australia, and the description of the first people witnessing the event by the traditional owners, represents enormous gaps in time. The dating of the crater had been preformed on material found some distance from the crater and there has always been some doubt as to the relationship of the material to the crater. This and the pristine condition of the shale balls indicates an underlying factor not previously looked at. The Dreaming is brilliantly simple and answers most of the outstanding questions. References: [1] Dr Peggy Reeves 2007. Aboriginal Paintings of the Wolfe Creek Crater. Track of the Rainbow Ser- pent. [2] Shoemaker et al, 1990. Ages of Australian craters: a preliminary report (abstract). Meteoritics 25:409.